Six Nations review – Week 2

This weeks Six Nations matches brought us some more quality Rugby…

Here’s a review of week 2.

Wales V England – 21-16

Wales hosted England on Saturday, in what was the most hyped up game of the weekend, after comments from both sides gave the game some added flair. The game did not let down either, with it being a typical clash between two great rivals; the match up ending 21-16 to the undefeated visitors.

Although Eddie’s side are now unbeaten in 16, they did not get off to quite the start the Aussie boss would have liked, as he intended to quieten the Welsh crowd with a fast first quarter of the game. Wales took advantage of a sloppy bit of play from Courtney Lawes early on, as he failed to roll away from a tackle, giving Halfpenny his first successful kick of the game; Farrell soon levelled the scoring with his own penalty.

Wales seemed to dominate the remainder of the first half besides a moment of English brilliance which led to their first try of the game; putting them in the driving seat at 8-6. Howley’s men missed an opportunity for their first try of the day as Webb’s effort was dismissed by the TMO. This only seemed to eager Wales, as Webb’s pass led to Williams sneaking in for their first try.

England came out in the second half with it all to do at 13-8, and they seemed to be missing their chances with some rather sloppy play. At this point, Eddie saw fit to make some replacements, as George and Haskell were sent on to turn around the game. Farrell’s penalty soon after the substitutions saw England bring the scores closer, but Halfpenny was quick to respond with another penalty to put the gap back to 5 going into the final quarter of the game.

England were reluctant to let slip as Farrell slotted another penalty to bring the win back into England’s sights. Super sub Te’o then made a break through the Welsh line in the final ten minutes to give England a chance to snatch the win with a penalty. But it was not to be, as it was Daly’s time to shine; working his magic to get over the line and get the win for a grateful England side.

England face Italy next weekend as Wales face Scotland who played a tough France side in week 2.

Italy V Ireland – 10-63

Both Italy and Ireland went into week 2 looking for their first win of the competition.

Italy took a big blow last week against Wales and seemed to be still recovering as they were stunned by an Ireland side who had a bonus point tucked away before half time. Ireland seemed to take notes from their defeat last week as they played some quality Rugby to seal a 28-10 lead at half time.

Ireland run rampant in Rome as Stander and Gilroy both grabbed themselves a hat trick, proving there is much to do for O’Shea if he wants to prove Italy are worthy of a Six Nations spot.

Schmidt’s men went on to dominate the fixture, beating the Italians 63-10.

Ireland will certainly be happy with their improvement from last week, which saw them lose to an on form Scotland side, as they showed tenacity from the word go, even controlling the game in their period with 14 men after Ryan’s yellow card.

Ireland face France next week in what should be another quality game as O’Shea’s damaged Italy side have more than enough on their plate as they prepare to face an England side who have have not yet shown their potential in the tournament.

France V Scotland – 22-16

France went into their game with Scotland on the back of a defeat in their first game, whilst their opponents were on the other end of the stick, after beating Ireland in week 1.

Although, it was France who did not let their first week get to them, as they went into the game in Paris with a positive mindset which proved pivotal. Scotland however kicked off the game with the first try, but this was not enough as France responded well with a try of their own which saw them convert the penalty to go into the dressing room at half time with a 13-11 lead after Finn Russell kicked 2 penalties to bring the Scot’s score up from 5.

Scotland came out after half time with a new lease of life, as a nice offload led to a kick and run, which then led to Swinson getting in under the posts.

It was penalty kicks which proved decisive in this game, as Lopez converted 2 kicks to put France back in the driving seat as Scotland struggled to get the score back to level. Although, the French resilience proved enough to get them the win.

Scotland face Wales in their next game, as they look to get things back to winning ways; whilst France play Ireland in